Overlord (WN)

Hi guys, sorry for the long wait, really busy in IRL with the final year of school.

Maruyama: There's no time? No, time is something you make! Somehow I found a huge mistake in the 2nd Novel! That was dangerous!

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The Ball Part 3

Translators: Frostfire10

The Imperial Palace contained several large rooms, the largest of which was used as the dancehall for this ball. Of course, if room size was the only consideration, there were larger ones in the Palace. However, for a room to be used as a dancehall for a ball, size was not everything.

A ball was not just an occasion to dance. It was a battlefield to show off one's authority and wealth, as well as a place to strength one's connections.

In addition, this ball was being hosted by the Emperor, and so those who could attend all held high positions that would gain his notice. And since very few nobles could refuse the Emperor's invitation, all sorts of nobles regardless of their faction gathered here today.

It was also a good chance to build bridges with those of higher ranks they could never normally hope to meet, and with nobles of opposing factions.

And with this as the primary objective, the location must not be too large to prevent mixing, yet not too small to be stifling, and must be decorated enough to not shame the host.

And so the number of rooms was naturally limited.

And it was in such a room that many well-dressed nobles had assembled and were enjoying a peaceful conversation. The topics of those conversations were shallow, talking about the recent weather or their own hobbies.

But the darker and more sombre conversations such as updates, discourse with other factions and exerting pressure were just hidden beneath the surface.

The wives and young daughters all were evaluating the fashion of their peers beneath a mask of smiles and were keeping any eye out for any potential enemies, all why maintaining a facade of mundane conversation.

In a certain way, this ball was created precisely due to the ugly aspects of noble society.

And those people were conversing about the hottest topic in the Empire: the newest noble.

As nobles, the earlier ceremony had some bland parts to it, but it showed that the Archduke was someone who understood noble society.

And that was quite a surprise.

This was as the Archduke was a powerful magic caster, similar to the previous Head Magician Fluder. Fluder had publicly stated that he was a magic caster and drew a clear line between himself and the nobles. And so he was extremely awkward during any public occasion.

In contrast, the Archduke was the opposite.

Of course, if one examined him hard enough his mannerisms were not perfect, but it heartened them to see him knowledgeable of noble etiquette.

And they were jubilant to learn that he was not that familiar with noble society.

Amongst the smiling nobles, there were many hard and serious workers.

On top of the buffet tables piled high with food, there were many servants carrying around equipment enchanted with <Detect Poison> who were separating the food, and there was a group of musicians quietly playing in the background so as to not spoil the mood.

In addition, the maids moved calmly and smoothly amongst the crowd of nobles, all whilst heeding their every whim. On top of being maids, they had received precautionary training against assassinations via poison and the like, making them the pros amongst pros.

Of course, there were only a sliver of people who did not know of the consequences of conducting an assassination at the ball hosted by the most important person in the Empire. However, with this much greed coalescing here, anything could happen, and caution was necessary.

Amongst the pride, greed, and wariness, there was a group of noble girls of the same faction who were making conversation, and it was a breath of fresh air in this stifling ball.

All of them were young women blessed with beauty and grace. The slight redness of their cheeks was not from makeup but was entirely natural.

And all of their clothes were of excellent make, allowing one to gauge the rank of their house.

The topic of their peaceful conversation was the new noble known as the Archduke.

Since he wore a mask, one was unable to learn of his true face, but the girls' opinions were split into two. One was that he was an amazingly beautiful man. The other was that he was horrendously ugly.

Since their fathers had indirectly ordered them to do their best to attract him, this topic was quite popular.

Since most of these girls completely understood that their marriage was a political tool, they had steeled themselves to do it no matter his face under the mask. However, the feminine part of them still remaining hoped that he was handsome.

And as the conversation slowly died, one of the noble women calmly spoke.

"And so everyone…. I have something to talk about."

She was the highest ranking noble daughter present.

Even though they were all friends, the gap between their families still naturally formed a hierarchy amongst them. The reason why a strict ranking had not formed between them, unlike other groups, was due to her kind and benevolent personality; most of the other girls actually idolised her.

Consequently, all of them adopted a listening posture.

"Emm, that no matter who sees the Archduke first, we can proceed calmly without fighting."

All of the noble ladies understood what was being said and took sidelong glances at their compatriots.

If one of them was the first to be noticed by the Archduke, their family's rank would instantly shoot upwards. It would not be strange for them to be able to fight for the leadership rights to their faction. As a result, internal conflicts had occurred and there had been an emphasis on the daughters of lesser houses to wear slightly worse clothes.

In fact, if one paid attention, there were signs that this had occurred amongst them, especially for the extremely beautiful ones.

"It will be fine. No such fools are present after all."

Another young lady elegantly responded to her words, causing several others to nod their heads in agreement.

Of course, there was no proof of this. Even if she gave her word, her family could easily overturn it anytime they wanted. However, this lady still wanted to somehow give back to the woman who had treated her kindly.

"Yes. If that happens, I will inform my husband."

"Well."

At those words, everyone's faces fell.

"Yes. I will simply cry about it to my husband."

"Indeed."

This husband they were referring to was naturally Archduke Ainz Ooal Gown. The moment his potential wife pleaded with him to do something, the target house would probably disappear.

This was natural. He was a Great Noble of the Empire, and although mostly rumours, he had an overwhelming military force that no one could go against."

"If I am selected, I shall recommend everyone else as mistresses."

"That will be….difficult. Preventing the other factions from joining will be a problem…. And to strengthen the Archduke's house…. This might be smarter…."

As the ladies looked amongst each other, they exchanged their thoughts. In order to work together to improve their houses and not argue no matter who caught the Archduke's eye first.

One of the people listening in on their conversation was a young man who had feelings for one of those ladies. His friends had tried to wrap their arms around his shoulder to comfort him, but he swatted them away in irritated.

In the end, there was an enormous barrier in the form of prestige and connections.

It was not a world where love and hatred mattered after all.

■

"Haa, it's nice to be of a house where you can speak with such pleasantries."

A young girl with a wide exposed forehead spoke.

Standing next to her were two of her compatriots. The three were dressed in relatively dull clothes. They were of good make, but they seemed to be old and of a colour that did not match their wearers.

"This is bad, Rei-chan."

"…. Stop calling me Rei-chan."

"It's the group of Duke Vanelland. It's really bad."

"Yes yes."

The girl swept aside her golden silk-like hair.

"Haa. It's because father has given me this impossible task. The chance that the Archduke will take an interest in me is very low…. Is he asking his daughter to put on a show for him?"

"B, but I think that Rei-chan has a chance."

"No way in hell."

"That's not true. Rei-chan is really beautiful. You'll definitely be selected."

Those words were not just pleasantries.

The young lady called Rei-chan was extremely beautiful.

Her golden hair flowed behind her, exposing her forehead.

Her reddish black eyes showed her strong force of will. Her excitement was clearly lacking due to the difficulty of the task, but apart from that, there was nowhere else to dock points.

"I said to stop calling me Rei-chan. Wait, I already said this earlier…."

She gave a sidelong glare at her friend who quivered in shock.

[But to us Rei-chan will be Rei-chan.]

The two spoke in unison. The girl called Rei-chan smiled, causing the other two to become surprised.

"I have seen through your pattern. Fufufu."

"Fendros-sama. It is about time for the final event. I believe you should quickly move to a better position."

The one who coldly spoke was a girl with a bobcut. She was the tallest amongst their group, and when standing next to the shorter two, she seemed even taller.

"….Haa. Since my parents have spent so much money to get me here, it would be bad if I didn't pull my weight…. How annoying. They should only see dreams in their sleep."

The complaining girl soon turned her attention to the bobcut girl.

"Liz. You are another kind if you want to tell everyone to ignore us fallen nobles, tell your parents first."

"….Fendros-sama."

The bobcut girl called Liz closed her mouth and frowned.

"Yes yes. Stop making those dark faces. Anyway, let us watch from here."

"Is that fine? I do not believe that it is a good idea."

"There will be many people here who will be unhappy if crumbling nobles got good spaces. Let us refrain, although I am sorry for our parents."

"Is that alright….

"Haa. I really wish our spring will come once again…. But the Archduke…."

"What's wrong Rei-chan?"

"Umm, we really know nothing about him. He seems to be a great magic caster who can wipe out 100,000 people from the Royal Army…."

"Did Fendros-sama feel nothing despite being a magic caster? I have heard that you saw the parade."

"Hmm? It's not such a convenient ability. My ability to sense things is entirely based on luck, and in fact, I felt absolutely nothing. Or rather I was more surprised by the number of jewels he had adorned himself in."

The girl waved her hand in denial. And then she spoke in a serious manner.

"I wonder if it was that girl, how much of the Archduke's power could she have comprehended?"

"Ah, Rei-chan's school friend?"

"Yes. An old friend. The girl somehow became an adventurer. I wonder what sort of sky is she seeing now?"

The girl looked towards a corner of the room. Over there was a set of stair covered in a crimson red carpet leading to a terrace of sorts. The stairs continued beyond it but were covered by a curtain.

A sole stocky man spoke in an elegant voice that ran against his appearance. Despite not shouting, his voice reverberated around the room.

He called out the names of nobles.

Following which, the curtains opened.

Standing there was a couple who, while bathed in various gazes, smiled and descended downwards. When they reached the bottom, another set of names were called and the curtain was opened.

Repeating several times, a multitude of nobles entered the party in a refined manner.

"Ah, isn't it the student council President. She came too."

Seeing a noble lady come down the stairs, the girl called Rei-chan raised her voice.

She was simply surprised that the top of the school had appeared here.

"She's a lady from a Duke's house."

"Amazing, she's so beautiful."

"The Duke houses are very high up, so the nobles should stop coming soon."

The rotund man, the officiator, called out the name of the next noble.

The order of their entrance depended on their social status; The further back they were, the higher their rank. This was common across all countries, but the Empire had an additional rule.

That was the Emperor's evaluation of them.

Basically, if the Emperor liked a family, they would be placed behind those of their same rank, and occasionally they even went above their ranks.

Having a clear hierarchy even amongst nobles of the same rank, and being able to show off their positions satisfied their pride as nobles.

In fact, the eyes of the nobles and their partners who were called all had eyes filled with superiority. However, when they went down the stairs, the next set of nobles were called and those eyes were then filled with envy.

Hearing the names and rank of the last noble, the girls felt that the introductions were almost over and looked towards an elevated position in the hall.

There were several chairs placed around a table, and each of its four corners was protected by a knight. The only place that would be protected by the strongest people in the Empire, the Four Knights, was where the Emperor would be.

However, there was no one sitting there.

Normally, the host would arrive first to welcome the invitees. However, for the man with absolute power, the Emperor, it was different. He would arrive last.

Seeing the officiator ready himself, the girl spoke to her two companions.

"It's about time for the Archduke to arrive."

The girl's thoughts were shared with all the nobles in the room, and everyone's gazes fell on the stairs. However, their expectations were betrayed.

The name that the officiater called out next was not that of the Archduke.

"Everyone. The Re-Estize Kingdom's Ambassador, Marquis Iblue, and his family have arrived."

A wave of confusion overtook the nobles.

"Eh? It seems that I was wrong…. Why is everyone so surprised?"

The girl made an exasperated expression. She rubbed her scrunched up eyebrows as she replied.

"At least learn about how the Imperial Court works. You are of a noble family…. Ready? Even though the Archduke has yet to arrive, an Ambassador has arrived. It means that the Empire is publicly announcing that the Archduke is more important than other countries."

"Normally, this would be impossible."

"But it's only that…. I can't believe it."

All of the nobles present agreed with her.

Normally it was impossible for a country to place more importance on its own nobles that another country. That was how the world worked.

However, this was not the case here.

Basically, this showed how much the Emperor Jircniv valued Archduke Ainz Ooal Gown, who now holds a position that all the nobles here would drool over.

Most of the nobles, especially the females who understood what this meant, had flames burn in their eyes. Some fathers almost exploded into their daughters’ ears.

It was also proof that the Empire still ranked the Ambassadors. Basically, the Re-Estize Kingdom Ambassador who was the first to be called was viewed as the least important of the Ambassadors.

The ambassador whose face was fixed into a smile had brought several people with him.

He felt like a spectacle, and he definitely did not enjoy it. However, it was an invitation from the Emperor, and he was no foolish enough to ignore a chance to mingle with nobles.

That mixture of emotions bubbled underneath his smile.

After several other ambassadors were called, the final ones were the Ambassadors from the Slane Theocracy.

Three people came out from behind the curtain. The one in front was the ambassador wearing his ceremonial robes. Behind him was his two guards.

The nobles became noisy upon seeing the ambassadors. But the ones who reacted the most were the Four Knights. In their movements was confusion, shock, and then confusion.

The envoy's clothes were certainly amazing, but they were not enough to affect the air about him. The ones the nobles were paying attention to were the two guards behind him.

One was a powerfully-built man.

A broad chest and thick arms. His tanned face had a bright smile.

The other was an elegant and relaxed handsome young man. He had a soft smile.

The two of them wore nothing over the top or strange. However, even normal people felt that they were different. They had a certain charm about them that attracted people, the air of the strong.

They calmly walked down the stairs and stood in a corner of the hall.

With all the ambassadors present, the nobles looked up with expectations of the next guest, and they saw the officiator's face tense.

And before they could think of any questions, he called out another name.

"The Emperor of the Baharuth Empire, His Majesty, Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix, has arrived."

The confusion of the nobles deepened. Their minds were still focused on a noble who was yet to appear and yet they saw a plain woman standing next to the Emperor.

As they lowered their heads in a panic, Jircniv calmly and confidently walked down the stairs with his female companion.

It was very rare for this Emperor's fiancee to appear in public. One of the reasons was her low birth, and the other was her appearance.

It was obvious when she was compared with all of the ladies here. Her beauty ranking was reached faster when counted from the bottom up. If she were not all dolled up, her fine clothes would look as if they were wearing her, and her ranking would fall even further.

The eyes of many ladies were filled with contempt, but the eyes of those close to the Emperor lacked this. This was as this woman was not chosen to be Imperial Consort only based on her features.

In the past, a noble had asked the Emperor a question; why have you chosen this woman?

In response, Jircniv had said this.

"If I wanted a beautiful woman, there are plenty. If I asked for them, countless would gather. However, there are few women who can raise the future Emperor. Those can are rare and must be treasured. Did you know, what she said to me? 'If you fear to have an ugly child, make one with a beautiful woman. I'll raise him splendidly.' She's a hundred times more interesting than those brainless idiots who have nothing but their looks."

In fact, although this was not made public, she was the only woman that Jircniv let discuss politics with him.

The two slowly ascended the platform and Jircniv sent a signal to the man standing on the terrace.

This was proof that another person was entering. Basically, it meant that Jircniv, the man standing at the top of the Empire, would welcome the sole Archduke in the country.

Only a few idiotic nobles could not comprehend what was occurring.

The officiator spoke.

"Everyone, Archduke Ainz Ooal Gown has arrived."

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Maruyama:

Next time, an incident occurs at in the dancehall!

"The lights went out! It's completely dark! I can't see anything!"

And the curtains lifted upon a terrible scene.

"Shalltear was killed!"

Just, who was the killer!? What is her goal!?

"Kufufufufu…. You're at fault here. Not including me in the web novel…."

Private Eye Ainz is on the case!

"I have solved the case! ….I think."

(….Or rather, who is that person dressed in black armour holding that bardiche? She's looking at me and wriggling about, it's really disgusting.)

I want to release the next one in October…. Uuuh will I be fine…. I haven't even corrected the spelling mistakes in the previous release.

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